Chapter Thirty-Three
Charlie
My heart jumped into my throat as everyone in the magnificent church gasped and turned around to see who the crazy person was running down the aisle.
Leaning around the pillar I’d been resting against to take some wide shots of the couple beneath the stunning stained-glass windows, I gaped and nearly choked on my own surprise.
“Nixon?” I whispered.
“You can’t do this. You can’t marry this guy.” His voice trembled with conviction as he reached Cassie and gently spun her around to face him. If I hadn’t been so dumbstruck, I would have cracked up laughing.
“Hey!” Troy pushed his shoulder while Cole stepped up from his best man post, ready to grab Nixon and wrestle him out of the building.
Nixon blinked and looked at the two towering guys before glancing down at the bride.
He froze for a second, and then his eyes bulged bigger than I’d ever seen them. “Oh, shi….”
He let Cassie go like she was on fire and stumbled back, nearly falling on his ass. “You’re not her.” He winced, then looked to Troy. “Okay, um, man, I am so sorry. I thought… This is the wrong wedding.” He swallowed and looked about ready to puke with embarrassment.
A snort came from the front row followed by a soft slap. Nessa…or Ronnie. They were no doubt fighting giggles. The sound set Jimmy off. He was standing behind Troy and didn’t hold back. His loud laughter boomed through the church.
Troy turned and gave his brother a dry glare, but it quickly turned into a snickering grin when Felix joined the pack of hyenas.
It didn’t take long for laughter to ripple through the entire church.
Poor Nixon.
He looked like he wanted the ground to open up and swallow him.
And it only got worse when Cassie started shaking her head and backing away from Troy. “This is just another sign,” she whimpered.
“Hey, no.” Troy jumped after her, grabbing her hand and putting a quick stop to the retreat.
Gently cupping her cheek, he forced her to look at him. I couldn’t see his face, but he was probably smiling with a tenderness that only Troy possessed.
“I know we’ve had some roadblocks, but this is it. This is our day. And I’m not letting some psycho set on reenacting The Graduate stop me from marrying the woman I love.”
A hush settled across the crowd as all eyes landed on the couple.
Lifting the camera, I quietly snapped a few pictures—capturing the beauty that Troy was creating with his heartfelt speech.
“I love you, Cassie. I always will. And I want you and me…and Felix.” He glanced over his shoulder, making Felix blush with a shy smile. “I want us to be an official family. I want it on paper, signed and sealed that you are Mrs. Cassie Baker.”
Cassie’s lips twitched, her voice trembling when she finally found it. “But it’s been so hard getting here.”
“I know, but we’re here now. We never gave up, because we’re meant to be together. And I’m gonna keep fighting for that reality no matter what comes our way.” He leaned forward and kissed her while a soft murmur of approval rippled through the crowd.
My lens ended up on Nixon and my breath caught. He had tears in his eyes.
“I’m so sorry,” he whispered again, squeezing the back of his neck and giving the couple a pained smile. “Please, get married.”
Cassie turned, her frown a mixture of confusion and pity.
But then she smiled at him. “I will.”
He cringed and apologized yet again before spinning and practically running for the exit.
He was about halfway down when he spotted Kelly and jerked to a stop.
Her smile was sweet and sympathetic as she pointed to the pillar I was standing behind.
I stepped out of hiding and raised my hand at him.
The look on his face nearly made me cry.
But I was working, and I wasn’t going to let those eyes own me again.
I nearly turned away from him and got back to taking photos, but I just couldn’t do it. With a flick of my head, I ushered him across to me.
He scampered down the aisle while everyone’s eyes tracked him.
As Nixon hid behind the pillar, the gazes all landed on me.
“Sorry about that.” I gave them my best smile. “I’ll explain later, but why don’t we let these two lovebirds finally get married. Third time lucky, right?” A cheer went up from the crowd and I raised my camera to snap photos of their hilarious expressions. Hopefully Cassie and Troy would look back on the moment with a smile and a laugh.
Leaning into a row of seats, I zoomed in on the bride and groom and caught Troy’s sweet, reassuring smile, then managed to get the look on Cassie’s face.
The service resumed and I snapped some more pictures, then glanced at Nixon. He leaned in and softly whispered, “I’m sorry. I thought you were getting married.”
I threw him an incredulous look.
“Your next-door neighbor said… And then Sarah…”
“What’s Sarah got to do with it?”
Oh man, I wondered where she was. She’d be ready to throttle Nixon for nearly throwing off the third wedding attempt.
“Ugh.” Nixon softly groaned. “It’s… It was…a miscommunication.”
“How could you think I was getting married?” I whispered before turning away to snap a shot of the wedding party as they all bowed their heads to pray.
“You said you had a boyfriend.” His whisper was so soft I barely heard it. And then it took me a moment to remember I’d told him that, which meant he figured out my lie within a nanosecond. His deep frown was kind of cute and I quickly snapped a photo of it.
He placed his hand on mine and gently pushed the camera down and away from my face. “I have to talk to you. I can’t keep pretending like there isn’t something between us. It’s driving me insane.”
I stilled, then caught sight of Sarah out of the corner of my eye. She was eyeing me from the other side of the church, an irritated frown on her face. I quickly lifted the camera and snapped a few more photos. Thank God the camera was covering my face as I tried to process what the hell Nixon was saying to me.
Three months of nothing and he just turns up like this?
The minister said “Amen” and the crowd all cast their eyes back to the couple while they got ready to exchange their vows. I had to move into a better position.
Glancing at Nixon, I grimaced and whisper-barked, “What about Shayna?”
“We broke up.” He brushed his fingers over the back of my hand. “I’ve been trying to figure everything out…but I know now. I know what I want.”
Damn those brown eyes. They were going to make me fold before I could stop myself.
Looking away from them, I noticed Troy had already started speaking. “Look, in case you haven’t noticed, I’m working right now. This is a really bad time.”
“I’ll wait.”
I walked away from his soft promise and moved into a better position. Once Cassie was done, they’d exchange rings and then kiss. I couldn’t miss a second of that. Even though the posed photos were coming later, I still had to capture the wedding kiss.
Nixon hung back in the shadows while I moved into the center aisle and tried to be invisible.
Cassie and Troy only had eyes for each other. Her voice trembled with emotion as she said her vows. His smile was like the sun, his eyes gleaming as he gazed down at her.
When the minister finally said, “You may now kiss the bride,” I planted my finger and snapped as much of the kiss as I could. I’d changed it to a high speed setting and was confident at least one shot would be pure gold.
The lighting in the place was freaking ethereal. I couldn’t wait to go through the photos and touch them all up before I left for Hawaii.
I’d be pulling an all-nighter to do it, but I could sleep on the plane, right?
I glanced to the side of the church and spotted Nixon watching me.
His smile was sad yet hopeful, which only served to act as a sledgehammer to my gut.
What the hell did he want to say to me?
I thought I’d never see him again, and there he was, busting down a church door to stop me from marrying someone.
It was ridiculously romantic, and totally confusing.
He’d broken up with Shayna. When?
Did I even want to hear the story?
I was set on leaving the country. Finally letting go of the hold he had on me.
Slamming my teeth together, I got back to work, hoping that staying busy and ignoring him would be enough to get me through the rest of the wedding.
Although, I had a sinking suspicion Nixon wasn’t going anywhere in a hurry.
I saw the look on his face when he said he needed to talk.
I just hoped I was strong enough to handle whatever the hell it was he wanted to say to me.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Nixon
The wedding was slow and painful. Charlie basically ignored me while she worked.
Fair enough. She was getting paid to do a job and I wasn’t going to get in the way of that.
But I wasn’t leaving either.
I’d shadow her until I had a chance to say what I needed to.
The bride and groom were nice enough to let me hover, despite the wedding planner’s complaints. After a little sweet-talking from Charlie, Sarah capitulated, but I was pretty sure she wouldn’t talk to, or smile at, me for the rest of the event. Not only was I the guy who nearly ruined a perfectly planned wedding, but I was also the guy who’d pulled out last minute of another wedding they’d been planning.
Scum was too nice of a word to describe me.
I went and apologized to Justin and he was pretty good about it. Thankfully the groom had redeemed the day with his beautiful speech, so the wedding was saved, and I was only responsible for destroying Shayna’s big day.
I cringed and gripped the back of my neck, unsure I’d ever live down my shame and guilt.
“Just focus on Charlie, man,” I mumbled. “You did the right thing.”
After the wedding, the bridal party drove straight to the reception venue. I followed Mr. Watson’s car, making sure never to lose sight of Charlie. The afternoon was whiled away on the vast grounds of Hasley Gardens, an exclusive private property that was hired out for weddings and special functions. It was down a mile-long driveway, and you wouldn’t even know it existed unless someone told you about it. They must have waited months for this booking.
Shit, I can’t believe I nearly fucked it up for them.
Thankfully, the bride had relaxed more and more as the afternoon wore on. The groom and his son (at least I assumed he was his son) knew how to make her laugh, and the three of them were obviously a close-knit family. She looked stunning in her designer dress, surrounded by meticulous greenery and water features. Troy couldn’t take his eyes off her…or lose the dopey smile on his face.
I got it. I felt the same way as I watched Charlie take charge and work her magic with the camera. She didn’t pose them too much; most of the time she just pointed at a pretty area in the gardens and told them to go have a chat. Occasionally she’d call out for them to kiss, cuddle or touch foreheads, but most of the time she got trigger-happy catching moments of spontaneous beauty. The bridal party was small, but their respective partners had been invited to join in the fun.
The flower girl was pretty darn cute too with her blonde ringlets and blue eyes…plus those dimples. She had enough charm and character to mingle with the wedding party easily. Her dad hovered around, reeling her in with a quiet Aussie accent. “Angel, come here, gorgeous.”
She’d run to him with a giggle and he’d hoist her into the air.
Charlie snapped a bunch of those photos. I caught a glimpse of one of them over her shoulder and it was photographic genius.
That light. Charlie would be going nuts over that light.
A breathy giggle spurted out of her before she lifted her camera again.
I stood back with a proud smile and kept watching it all from the sidelines.
Glasses of champagne, easy banter, and raucous laughter mixed with piles of love. It made for an entertaining afternoon.
The photos would be amazing, I had no doubt about that.
Where I could, I lent a hand, but most of the wedding party acted like I didn’t exist…or threw me the odd you’re a weirdo look. The only reason they were letting me hang around was because Charlie asked them too.
As the night approached and the wedding reception got underway, I stuck to the shadows and the corners of the room as much as I could.
Kelly bought me a beer during the dinner service, her eyes dancing with amusement.
“I didn’t think you were capable of something that crazy.”
“We’ve met like one time before this.” I shrugged, hinting that she didn’t know me at all.
“Yet I’ve spent hours hearing all about you.”
My lips twitched.
Kelly grinned and sipped her wine. “Finally figured out you love her, huh?”
“I’ve always known,” I murmured. “It’s just taken me a while to find the courage to fight for it.”
Kelly’s expression softened. “Well, good luck. And make sure you say everything you need to, tonight.”
“Why?”
She went to answer me but was stopped by a girl I didn’t recognize. She was blonde with these stunning blue eyes that checked me out before speaking. “What’s the deal? Are you really here to win Charlie over? Because if you’re not sure, you can just walk your butt right out the door.”
I frowned at the strange woman and flicked a glance at Kelly.
She grinned and introduced us. “Nixon, this is Fliss, Charlie’s roommate.”
Fliss stuck out her hand to shake and I caught a glimpse of that big ring the neighbor had mentioned.
“Nice ring.” I shook her hand with a small grin.
“Thank you.” She spun it on her finger and nailed me with a stellar glare. “Now, stop changing the subject and tell me what your intentions are.”
“I…” I let out a sigh. “My intentions are to tell her that I love her.”
Fliss planted her fist on her hip. “Aren’t you supposed to be getting married at the end of June?”
“I called off the wedding.”
Her eyebrows rose, her eyes still fiery with concern. “Did you tell your parents?”
Shit, Charlie really hadn’t held back, had she?
I looked to the floor with a heavy sigh. “I didn’t know what my dad had done to her. I just found out and, uh… They know I’m not happy about it. They know I have no intention of getting back together with Shayna.”
Fliss nodded, slightly appeased, but not enough to smile at me. “Well, that’s something, but don’t come into this half-assed. It’s not fair when she’s—”
Fliss’s warning was cut off by Jimmy Baker, the lead guitarist for Chaos, calling everyone to gather around for the bride and groom’s first dance. Kelly grinned and quickly grabbed Fliss’s arm, pulling her away from me. She whispered something into Kelly’s ear, and Charlie’s cousin nodded before they both glanced over their shoulders at me.
More eye bulging and head shakes. I was seeing a lot of that.
Slumping down into a spare chair against the wall, I got out of the way while the bride and groom did their wedding dance to “Say You Won’t Let Go.” The song hit me right in the heart, like it did everyone. Jimmy was singing in perfect harmony with Ness while the rest of the band quietly played behind them. Troy’s son was also up there, which was a nice touch.
I studied their faces, saw them smiling into the crowd while they played. Seemed like everyone had a partner. The bride and groom swayed next to each other, and as the song continued, different couples walked onto the floor. The tall guy who looked like Superman with his little wife. They’d been at the photo shoot. I was pretty sure her name was Ella.
> Next to her was a blonde woman with her… Shit, that was Sean Jaxon, the Hollywood film star.
My eyebrows popped high as I soaked in the fame for a second.
“You’re funny.” A little voice over my shoulder made me jump.
I turned and spotted a girl with blonde ringlets and a cherub face.
“Hi, flower girl.”
“Hello.” She brushed a curl off her cheek and stuck out her hand. “I’m Angel. What’s your name, funny man?”
“Nixon.”
She bobbed her head and climbed onto the chair next to me, tucking her silky dress beneath her knees. Her feet dangled above the ground, her sparkly shoes swinging back and forth.
“I’m six.” Her cute little nose twitched.
“Wow. That’s pretty old.”
“I know. I go to school now.”
“You must be pretty smart, then.”
“Daddy says so.” She pointed to the dance floor at a good-looking guy with a super-hot wife. He was the Australian guy at the photo shoot.
Leo? Yeah, that was it.
His wife was blonde and brilliant. Her smile could light a room.
“You know, you look like your mommy.”
Angel grinned like I’d just given her the world’s best compliment. “Thank you.”
I gazed back at the couple. They had their foreheads pressed together as they swayed to the song, his hand gently caressing her baby bump.
“My little brother’s in her belly. He’s coming out in two months.”
“You must be excited.”
She shrugged. “I already have a little sister, Elenore. She’s two and can be really annoying, but she’s cute so that makes it easier to love her.”
I grinned. “Elenore. Nice name.”
“Yeah, they named her after that song by The Turtles. My parents do that.” She shrugged. “I’m named after that song ‘Angelia’ by Richard Marx. Who knows what they’ll call my brother.” She shook her head like her parents were a hopeless case.
I couldn’t help laughing.
She looked at me with a what’s so funny expression and I quickly covered. “So, having a little sister is sometimes fun and sometimes not.”
Rather Be (A Songbird Novel) Page 18